"Nils is the right person to lead our broadcasting operations," Eddy Hartenstein, Tribune Co.'s CEO and publisher of the Los Angeles Times, said in the announcement. "He's thoughtful, creative, and has the vision necessary to maximize the effectiveness of the group."

Larsen is a close associate of Tribune Co. Chairman Sam Zell. The anaging director of Zell Equity Group Investments, Larsen joined the media company in 2008. He has overseen Tribune Co. business development and investments and helped with the T.J Oshie L Jersey company restructuring in his role as chief investment officer.

In October, after the resignation of Tribune Co. CEO Randy Michaels, Larsen added the title of Tribune Broadcasting chairman and was one of four executives on the council that ran the parent company until Hartenstein, another member of the nowdissolved executive council, was named chief executive of the Chicagobased media conglomerate.

Hartenstein said in a note to employees this morning that, through April, Tribune Broadcasting revenue and cash flow were "up significantly" compared to the same span a year earlier.

Kersting had been president of Tribune Broadcasting since May 2010, promoted after five months as its chief operating officer when Ed Wilson resigned the post.

At the time of his appointment as president, Kersting expressed a desire "to shake up" TV news. "Every night, people turn on their local news and see the same thing wherever they flip the channel," Kersting said. "We intend to change that."

Under Kersting, the station launched a pair of pilot news programs in Houston. One is a newsreelstyle, anchorless broadcast that aired evenings. The other is a morning news and entertainment program originating largely from Chicago that could be syndicated to other markets.

This fall, Tribune Co. is launching a New Yorkbased syndicated daytime talk show starring controversial Cincinnati radio host Bill Cunningham.

"Our broadcasting operations are led by gifted people who know their customers and local communities very well," Larsen said in a statement. "We've been expanding local news, developing new original programming and making smart decisions with our syndicated programming, which is driving ratings and resonating with advertisers. We have momentum and there's a lot more opportunity ahead."

Larsen attracted attention in 2008 for his role as a liaison between Tribune Co. and the Blagojevich administration when the company was weighing a possible deal with the state of Illinois for Wrigley Field. Those discussions were notable for the allegation that former Gov.